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Christmastime Interview questions for Linda’s Book Obsession – November 2018
What was the inspiration for the Christmastime series?
I grew up with stories of the WWII years. My dad was a B-17 tail gunner and my mom trained as a nurse in the Cadet Program, so the war years very much had a presence in our house. Christmastime 1940 first began as a short story, then I developed it in a playwriting class (many years ago). But I realized that the story could best be told through an internal point of view. It all came together when I shifted the story’s main point of view character to Lillian.
What are the basic themes in the series?
Love, family, home, memories, celebrating life, the quest for beauty and meaning. In all my books, my main character tends to be a female artist – whether a painter, a gardener, or just someone who seeks out beauty and makes it an integral part of her life.
Can the books be read out of sequence?
Each book can be read as a stand-alone book, but I think they’re much better read in order since the key characters are featured in all the books and their individual stories develop.
What is the structure of the series?
All the books follow the lives of Lillian and her two sons, Tommy and Gabriel. And Lillian’s relationship with Charles Drooms is a pivotal part of each story. But there are also separate love stories that appear in each book, sometimes with familiar characters, other times introducing new ones. A secondary plot begins with Christmastime 1943, the action of which takes place on a farm in Illinois, and continues through the final book.
What is the final book? And how many books will be in the Christmastime series?
The last book in the series will be Christmastime 1945 (out in 2018). From the beginning, I wanted the series to focus on the WWII years on the home front. However, I will also write a shorter novel, Christmastime 1939, as an introduction to the world of Christmastime. That will make it a seven-book series, which has a nice feel to it, and will cover the official years of WWII – 1939-1945.
Where would you like the readers to contact you? Thank you so much for the interview, Linda.
: My website is https://lindamahkovec.com/ – I have a seasonal blog there that comes out about 3 times a month, and a newsletter (will probably be quarterly, or just whenever I have news).
Pinterest might be of interest to the readers because I have several book boards that really help to visualize the places I write about.
And I’m on FB and Twitter.
Linda's Book Obsession: 